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1967 IH Maxim Brushbreaker

Motivation for my 1967 Marion 127 build was twofold. International Loadstars of that era were popular not only for fire apparatus use, but also for all sorts of medium-duty commercial and municipal uses. But, oddly, they were never kitted by any manufacturers. The truck I replicated is still in service in Marion, Mass., and I wanted to capture this look from a historical perspective before it was gone. Although retaining much of its initial look when first built in 1967 by the Maxim Motor Company, the rig was upgraded in 2013 with a new water tank, pump, bar work, and paint scheme by the Marion Fire Department. That motivated me to transform AMT’s 1953 Ford Pickup cab into a similar International Loadstar 1700. The donor kit’s fenders were first cut off and salvaged, then reversed and glued to the opposite sides of the cab to form the sculpture line typical of Internationals of that time.